Filter-press.



Patented Aug. 19, I902. 4

F. m. LUCKE. FILTER PRESS.

(Application filed May 17', 1901.)

(No Model.)

N TOR n4 ORNEYS.

WITNESSES -UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIcn.

n innnpnoo rnor vioroa nnw YORK.'

PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Fatent No. 7o7,245, dated August 19, 1902.

Application filed May 1 7, I901.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED M. LOOKE, of Victor, in the county of Ontario, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Im- 5 provements in Filter-Presses, of which the following, taken in connection-with the accompanying drawings, is a'full,'clear, and exact description. A

This invention relates to improvements in filter-presses for use in the manufacture of porcelain andsimilar, articles.

In preparing clayfor the mannfacture of porcelain the clay is first mixed with sufficient water to constitute what ISBfkDOWl]. as slip that is, liquidclay. This is done for the purpose of dissolvingall of the clay to auniform consistency. Itthen becomesnecessary to filter out enough of the water to put the clay into an ordinary plastic'condition, so that it will hold its shape into which it may be molded. This is now accomplished by what I may term a gang-press, in which are a series of centrally-perforated plates having their edges or rims extending toward each other, so as to form'between the several sets of plates a pocket of any desired form. The faces of theseoplates or disks are corrugated Vertically and have radial openings in the lower edge of the rims through which the water can be passed. Canvas backing or bags are used to protect the clay from the face of the metallic disk and also afford means through which the water when it is expressed from the slip passes. In my own experience I have, however, foundthat this is a very slow process and as the machines are expensive necessarily causes the filtering of the clay to be expensive.

The object of my invention is to-facilitate the means for expressingmore rapidly the water from the slip by the machines which are now in common use and as illustrated in the drawings. This'I accomplish by placing a circular piece of felt provided with a central opening between the corrugated face of the metallic disk and the canvas backing or veil above referred to. The water readily passes through the canvas and into the felt, which serves as a conduit and allows it to Serial No. 60,700. iNo model.)

pass-down more readily to the lower edge of the disk and thence into the opening. By practical experience in my own factory I have found that by the use of felt I am enabled to filter out threebatches of clay in one day as against one batch by the old method.

My invention, therefore, consists in the placing of a piece of felt or similar porous material to serve as a conduit for the water between the face of the disk and the backing or veil for the purpose of expediting and hastening along the work of filtration.

I do not limit myself to the use of felt, for it is evident that other materials may be used which couldperform the same function.

I have always found,that,.by placing the felt between the disk and thebacking or veil the life of this veil or bagisincreased materially, for the reason that the pressure of the canvas directly. against the corrugated disk tends to rent itand soon causes it to tear and'be of no value.

Tothis end my invention consists in the several new and novel features hereinafter described, and more fully set forth in the claims hereunto annexed.

It is constructed'as follows, reference being had'to the accompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a filterpress to which my invention is applied. Fig. 2 is a face view, partly in section, of one of the pressure-plates seen in Fig. 1, a portion of the yielding disk or layer being broken away, showing the corrugations of the plate. Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view through a series of the plates, showing the sacks and yielding disks in operative position. Fig. 4 is an isometric view of a portion of one of the sacks. Fig. 5 is a similar view of oneof'the yielding disks. 1 r

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

My invention consists, essentially, in interposing one or more disks or layers of yielding absorbent material, such as felt or its equiva lent, between the fabric sack and the adjacent faces of the filter-plates for protecting the sack from injury and also serving to absorb the moisture expressed from the mate-. rial being treated and to conduct said moisture away from the material.

Although I have shown this invention as applied to a specific form of filter-press in common use for treating material used in the manufacture of porcelain, it is apparent that it is equally applicable to other devices in which any material may be compressed in sacks or between fabric layers for expressing the moisture or juices therefrom.

To illustrate the utility of my invention, I have shown an ordinary filter-press, consisting of a frame 1, having a fixed plate 2 and a series of plates 3 and at, mounted on the frame and movable toward and away from the fixed plate 2, the plate 3 forming a movable head and the plates 4. being interposed between the plates 2 and These plates 2, 3, and 4 are formed with recesses 5 in their adjacent faces, the end walls of said recesses being serrated or corrugated vertically at 6, and their lower walls are usually perforated at 7 for conducting the expressed moisture from between the plates.

The plates 2 and 4 are provided with substantially central openings 8, alined with each otherand communicating with recesses 5, and are inclosed in suitable sacks 10. Each of these sacks usually consists of opposite layers of fabric, which are stitched or otherwise secured together at their intermediate portions and are provided with substantially central apertures 11, alined with the openings 8 of the plates 2 and 4.. These sacks are inserted into the openings of the respective plates, and the opposite layers of said sacks are folded outwardly upon the opposite faces of the plates, being held in position by suitable clamping means, as bars 12, mounted on the upper ends of the plates. By thus arranging the sacks it is evident that the material to be treated is inserted through the opening in the end sack of the plate 2 and is forced under pressure successively through all of the openings of the plates and their respective sacks and enters the recesses between the several plates, thus entirely filling the spaces between the layers of the adjacent sacks and also the openings therein. After the material has been thus forced between the several plates the movable plates are then compressed or rather moved toward the end plate 2 by a suitable screw 14, having one or more handpieces 15 and 16 for rotating the screw, and thereby compressing the material between the several plates for the purpose of expressing the moisture therefrom, it being understood that the moisture thus released is conducted downwardly along the upright corrugations and through the apertures in the lower walls of the recesses of said plates. Heretofore the layers of the sacks have been arranged in direct contact with the serrations or corrugations of the plates, and therefore when the usual pressure was brought to bear upon the plates the compression of material between said plates forced the walls of the sacks into close contact with the more or less sharp edges of the corrugations or serrations, and thereby strained the fabric to such an extent as to impair its integrity, and owing to the fact that these sacks are quite expensive and that it was frequently necessary to remove the old sacks and replace the same with new ones I sought to devise some means for prolonging the life of these sacks and at the same time to facilitate the expression of the moisture from the material therein. I have therefore interposed between the layers of the sacks and the adjacent corrugated surfaces of the plates layers 18 of yielding absorbent material, usually consisting of felt or equivalent light and tenacious substance capable of absorbing the moisture expressed from the material being treated and also serving to protect the fabric of the sacks from being mutilated by the corrugations or serrations of the plates.

While this invention seems to be particularly simple, yet it has proven to be of considerable value and was only brought about by careful study and experiment to obviate the destruction of the sacks and at the same time to increase the efficiency of this class of machines.

In the operation of my invention the disks or yielding layers 18 are inserted in the recesses against the corrugated faces of each plate, the sacks are inserted in the openings of the plates, one sack for each plate, and the layers or opposite walls of the sack are then folded outwardly upon the opposite faces of their respective plates, the outer edges being impinged between the adjacent flanges of the plates, and the upper edges are usually impinged between the clamping-bars 12 and the adjacent faces of the plates for holding the sacks in position.

The operation. of my invention will now be readily understood upon reference to the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings, and it will be noted that the interposed layers of absorbent material between the bags and plates forms a speedy and effective means for taking up the moisture or water from the material being treated and conducting the same away from the material to the discharge-openings, thereby preventing any lag in the Water during the process of expressing the same and materially re-. ducing the time and labor required in the treatment of each charge.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A plate for filter-presses having a yielding bearing-surface made of absorbent material for engaging the saoksand preventing of a filter-press of layers of absorbent mateinjury thereto, and permitting escape of the rial between the'bagsi and plates for taking water. p up the liquid and conducting the same from 2. In combination with a filter-press plate the material to be treated. 5 having a corrugated surface, a yielding disk In witness whereof I have hereunto set my 15- adjacent to the corrugated surface for prehand this 10th day of May,1901.

Venting injury to the sack, said disk being FRED MQLOCKE. made of absorbent material, for permitting Witnesses: easy outlet for the water. M. W. BURKE,

1o 3. The combination with the plates and bags A. HIGINBOTHAM. 

